pre14a
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE 14A
(Rule 14a-101)
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN PROXY STATEMENT
SCHEDULE 14A INFORMATION
Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No. )
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THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
c/o State Street Bank and Trust Company
P.O. Box 5049, 2 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, Massachusetts 02206-5049
For questions about the Proxy Statement, please call (800) 636-9242
December__, 2008
Dear Stockholder:
Enclosed you will find a Notice and Proxy Statement for the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of
The Taiwan Fund, Inc. (the Fund) to be held on Monday, January 12, 2009.
The matters on which you, as a stockholder of the Fund, are being asked to vote are: (1) the
election of the Funds directors and (2) the approval of a new form of Discretionary Investment
Management Contract (the New Management Agreement) between the Fund and HSBC Global Asset
Management (Taiwan) Limited (HSBC Taiwan or the
Adviser), the Funds current Adviser.
After reviewing each matter carefully, the Board of Directors recommends that you vote FOR
each of the proposals.
YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT, REGARDLESS OF THE NUMBER OF SHARES YOU OWN. PLEASE TAKE A FEW MINUTES
TO REVIEW THIS MATERIAL, CAST YOUR VOTE ON THE ENCLOSED PROXY CARD AND RETURN IT IN THE ENCLOSED
POSTAGE-PAID ENVELOPE. YOUR PROMPT RESPONSE IS NEEDED TO AVOID FOLLOW-UP MAILINGS WHICH WOULD
INCREASE COSTS PAID BY ALL STOCKHOLDERS.
Thank you very much for your assistance.
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Sincerely, |
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Andrew Chen
President |
THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
Notice of Annual Meeting of Stockholders
January 12, 2009
To the Stockholders of THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.:
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of The Taiwan Fund, Inc. (the
Fund) will be held at the offices of HSBC Investments (Hong Kong) Limited, HSBC Main Building,
Level 22, 1 Queens Road, Central, Hong Kong, on Monday, January 12, 2009 at 1:00 p.m., local time,
for the following purposes:
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To elect eight directors to serve for the ensuing year. |
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To approve a new form of Discretionary Investment Management Contract (the New
Management Agreement) between the Fund and HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan)
Limited (HSBC Taiwan or the Adviser), the Funds current Adviser. |
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To transact such other business as may properly come before the meeting or any
adjournments thereof. |
The Board of Directors has fixed the close of business on December 1, 2008 as the record date
for the determination of stockholders entitled to notice of and to vote at the meeting or any
adjournments thereof.
You are cordially invited to attend the meeting. Stockholders who do not expect to attend the
meeting in person are requested to complete, date and sign the enclosed form of proxy and return it
promptly in the envelope provided for that purpose. The enclosed proxy is being solicited by the
Board of Directors of the Fund.
By order of the Board of Directors
Adelina Louie
Secretary
December ___, 2008
PROXY STATEMENT
THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
INTRODUCTION
This Proxy Statement is furnished in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the Board
of Directors of THE TAIWAN FUND, INC. (the Fund) for use at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders,
to be held at the offices of HSBC Investments (Hong Kong) Limited, HSBC Main Building, Level 22, 1
Queens Road, Central, Hong Kong, on Monday, January 12, 2009 at 1:00 p.m., local time, and at any
adjournments thereof. The Funds investment adviser is HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan)
Limited (the Adviser), 99 Tun Hwa South Road, Section 2, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
The approximate date on which this Proxy Statement and the form of proxy will be mailed to
stockholders is December ___, 2008. Any stockholder giving a proxy has the power to revoke it by
mail (addressed to the Secretary of the Fund c/o the Funds administrator, State Street Bank and
Trust Company, at the Funds address at P.O. Box 5049, 2 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, Massachusetts
02206-5049) or in person at the meeting, by executing a superseding proxy or by submitting a notice
of revocation to the Fund. All properly executed proxies received in time for the meeting will be
voted as specified in the proxy or, if no specification is made, for the election of directors and
for the approval of the New Management Agreement described in this Proxy Statement. Abstentions
are included in the determination of the number of shares present at the meeting for purposes of
determining the presence of a quorum.
The Board of Directors has fixed the close of business on December 1, 2008 as the record date
for the determination of stockholders entitled to notice of and to vote at the meeting and at any
adjournment thereof. Stockholders on the record date will be entitled to one vote for each share
held, with no shares having cumulative voting rights. As of the record date, the Fund had
outstanding [ ] shares of common stock.
Management of the Fund knows of no business other than those mentioned in Proposals 1 and 2 of
the Notice of Meeting which will be presented for consideration at the meeting. If any other
matter is properly presented, it is the intention of the persons named in the enclosed proxy to
vote in accordance with their best judgment.
The Fund will furnish, without charge, a copy of its annual report for its fiscal year ended
August 31, 2008 to any stockholder requesting such report. Requests for the annual report should
be made in writing to The Taiwan Fund, Inc., c/o State Street Bank and Trust Company, P.O. Box
5049, 2 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, Massachusetts 02206-5049, Attention: William C. Cox, or by
calling (800) 636-9242.
PROPOSAL 1 ELECTION OF DIRECTORS
Persons named in the accompanying form of proxy intend in the absence of contrary instruction
to vote all proxies for the election of the eight nominees listed below as directors of the Fund to
serve for the next year, or until their successors are elected and qualified. Each of the nominees
for director has consented to be named in this Proxy Statement and to serve as a director of the
Fund if elected. The Board of Directors of the Fund has no reason to believe that any of the
nominees named below will become unavailable for election as a director, but if that should occur
before the Annual Meeting for the Fund, the persons named as proxies in the proxy cards will vote
for such persons as the Board of Directors of the Fund may recommend.
1
Information Concerning Nominees and Officers
The following table sets forth certain information concerning each of the nominees as a
director, each of whom is currently serving as a director of the Fund, and officers of the Fund.
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Position(s) |
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Other Directorships in |
Name, Address, and |
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Held with |
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Director |
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Principal Occupation(s) or Employment |
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Publicly-Held |
Age |
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Fund |
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Since |
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During Past Five Years |
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Companies or Funds |
Independent Current Directors |
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M. Christopher Canavan,
Jr. (69) #
73 Brook Street
Wellesley, MA 02482 |
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Director |
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2003 |
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Independent Consultant
(2000-present). |
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Harvey Chang (57) #
21/F, No. 172-1,
Section 2,
Ji-Lung Road
Taipei, Taiwan, ROC |
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Chairman of the
Board (since July
2005) and Director |
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2005 |
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President and Chief Executive
Officer, Taiwan Mobile Company
Limited (September 2003-present). |
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Director, Taiwan
Mobile Co. Ltd.;
Director, CX
Technology Corp.;
Director, Lite-On
Technology Corp. |
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Michael F. Holland (64)
#
375 Park Avenue,
New York, New York
10152 |
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Director |
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2007 |
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Chairman, Holland & Company LLC
(1995-present). |
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Director, The
Holland Balanced
Fund, Inc., The
China Fund, Inc.,
Scottish Widows
Investment
Partnership Trust
and Reaves Utility
Income Fund;
Trustee, State
Street Master Funds
and State Street
Institutional
Investment Trust. |
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Benny T. Hu (59) #
6/F, 76 Tun Hwa
South Road,
Section 2,
Taipei, Taiwan, ROC |
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Director |
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1993 |
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Chairman, CDIB Bioscience Venture
Management, Inc. (August
2001-present); Chairman, China
Development Industrial Bank (June
2003-May 2004); Chairman, China
Development Asset Management Corp.
(June 2001-May 2004);
Ambassador-at-Large, Republic of
China (May 2001-May 2006). |
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Director, Yangming
Marine Transport
Corp.; Supervisor,
Taiwan High Speed
Rail Corp.;
Director, T-Join
Transportation Co.,
Ltd.;
Chairman, Whitesun
International. |
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Position(s) |
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Other Directorships in |
Name, Address, and |
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Held with |
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Director |
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Principal Occupation(s) or Employment |
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Publicly-Held |
Age |
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Fund |
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Since |
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During Past Five Years |
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Companies or Funds |
Anthony Kai Yiu
Lo (60) #
2/F, Hong Villa
12 Bowen Street,
Hong Kong
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Director |
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2003 |
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Chairman and Co-CEO, Shanghai
Century Acquisition Inc. (January
2006-present); Founder and
Managing Director, Prime Credit Ltd.
(2001-January 2006). |
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Christina Liu (51) #
13 fl. No. 200 Keelung
Road,
Section 1,
Taipei, Taiwan, ROC
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Director |
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2005 |
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Chief Economic Advisor, Daiwa
Institute of Research (DIR) (2008-
present); Legislator (People First
Party, Two Consecutive Terms, First
Chair National Legislative
Representative), Legislative Yuan of
the Republic of China (2002-2007);
Finance Committee Chair, Legislative
Yuan of the Republic of China
(2005-2007); Financial Law Reform
Committee Chair, Legislative Yuan of
the Republic of China
(2005-present); Professor of
Finance, National Taiwan University
(1993-present); Adjunct Professor of
Economics and Management, Tsinghua
University of Beijing
(2001-present). |
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Joe O. Rogers (59) #
2477 Foxwood Drive
Chapel Hill, NC 27514
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Director |
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1986 |
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Manager, The Rogers Team LLC (July
2001-present). |
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Director and Member
of the Audit
Committee, The
China Fund, Inc. |
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Bing Shen (59) #
1755 Jackson Street, #405
San Francisco, CA 94109
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Director |
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2007 |
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Independent Consultant
(2005-present); President CDIB & Partners Investment
Holding Corporation (May 2004-August
2005); Executive Vice President,
China Development Industrial Bank
(March 1999-May 2004). |
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Supervisor, CTCI
Corporation;
Independent
Non-Executive
Director, Delta
Networks, Inc.,
Chairman, Audit
Committee, Delta
Networks, Inc.;
Chairman, Audit
Committee, CTCI
Corporation. |
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Other Directorships in |
Name, Address, and |
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Position(s) Held |
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Officer |
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Principal Occupation(s) or Employment |
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Publicly-Held |
Age |
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with Fund |
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Since |
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During Past Five Years |
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Companies or Funds |
Officers |
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*Andrew Chen (44)
24th/F,
99 Tun Hwa South
Road,
Section 2,
Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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President
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2007 |
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CEO, HSBC Global Asset Management
(Taiwan) LimitedÙ
(November 2004-present); Research
Director, JF Asset Management
(Taiwan) Limited (November
2002-2004).
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*Adelina Louie (42)
HSBC Investments
(Hong Kong) Limited
Level 22
HSBC Main Building
1 Queens Road Central,
Hong Kong
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Secretary and
Treasurer
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2004 |
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Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Asia
Pacific, HSBC Investments (Hong
Kong) Limited (May 2006-present);
Chief Operating Officer, HSBC Global
Asset Management (Taiwan)
LimitedÙ (March
2004-April 2006); Area Commercial
Manager, HSBC (U.K.) Ltd. (February
2002-March 2004).
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Richard F. Cook, Jr.
(57)
Foreside Compliance
Services, LLC
Three Canal Plaza,
Suite 100,
Portland, Maine 04101
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Chief Compliance
Officer
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2007 |
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Employee of Foreside Fund Services,
LLC (November 2005-January 2006);
Director of Foreside Compliance
Services, LLC (January
2006-present); Chief Compliance
Officer, Guinness Atkinson Funds
(November 2005-present); Chief
Compliance Officer, The Japan Fund,
Inc. (April 2007-present); Managing Member of NorthLake,
LLC (2002-present).
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As of June 2, 2008, HSBC Investment (Taiwan) Limited
changed its name to HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited. |
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Other Directorships in |
Name, Address, and |
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Position(s) Held |
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Officer |
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Principal Occupation(s) or Employment |
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Publicly-Held |
Age |
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with Fund |
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Since |
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During Past Five Years |
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Companies or Funds |
Mary Moran Zeven (47)
2 Avenue de
Lafayette,
2nd
Floor,
Boston, Massachusetts
02111 |
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Assistant Secretary
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2005 |
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Senior Vice President and Senior
Managing Counsel, State Street Bank
and Trust Company (2002-present).
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Elizabeth A. Watson
(54)
4 Copley Place,
5th Floor,
Boston, MA 02116 |
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Assistant Secretary
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2007 |
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Vice President and Managing Counsel,
State Street Bank and Trust Company
(August 2007-present); Vice
President and General Counsel (May
2004-July 2007) and Chief Compliance
Officer (July 2004-October 2006),
Quantitative Investment Advisors,
Inc.; Clerk (July 2004-July 2007),
Chief Legal Officer (January
2007-July 2007), Chief Legal Officer
(January 2007-July 2007), Chief
Compliance Officer (July
2004-December 2005), Quantitative
Group of Funds; President and
General Counsel, U.S. Boston Capital
Corporation (May 2004-July 2007);
Principal, Watson & Associates
(2002-2004).
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Nominee for director. |
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Officer is considered to be an interested person (as defined in the Investment Company Act
of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act)) of the Fund or of the Adviser. |
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There is one Portfolio in the Fund Complex overseen by the Directors. |
The Funds Board of Directors has a separately designated Audit Committee established in
accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the
Exchange Act) which is responsible for reviewing financial and accounting matters. The Funds
Audit Committee is composed of directors who are independent (as defined in the New York Stock
Exchange, Inc. (NYSE) listing standards, as may be modified or supplemented) and not interested
persons of the Fund and its actions are governed by the Funds Audit Committee Charter, which is
attached as Appendix A. The current members of the Audit Committee are Messrs. Canavan, Holland,
Lo, Rogers and Shen. The Audit Committee convened four times during the fiscal year ended August
31, 2008.
The
Funds Board of Directors has determined that the Fund has at
least one Audit Committee financial expert. Mr. M. Christopher
Canavan, Jr., an independent director, is the Audit Committees
financial expert.
The Funds Board of Directors has a Nominating Committee, which is responsible for
recommending individuals to the Board for nomination as members of the Board and its Committees.
The Nominating Committee does not consider nominees recommended by the security holders. The Board
believes that it is appropriate for the Fund to have such a policy regarding nominees recommended
by security holders because the Committee has not previously received any director candidate
recommendations from a non-director stockholder. The Funds Nominating Committee is composed of
directors who are not interested persons of the Fund (as defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the
Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the 1940 Act) (Independent Directors), and
independent (as defined in the NYSE listing standards), and its actions are governed by the Funds
Nominating Committee Charter, attached hereto as Appendix B. The current members of the Nominating
Committee are Messrs. Canavan, Chang, Lo and Ms. Liu. The Nominating Committee convened once
during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008.
5
Persons recommended by the Funds Nominating Committee as candidates for nomination as
directors are required to possess such knowledge, experience, skills, expertise and diversity so as
to enhance the Boards ability to manage and direct the affairs and business of the Fund,
including, when applicable, to enhance the ability of committees of the Board to fulfill their
duties and/or to satisfy any independence requirements imposed by law, regulation or any listing
requirements of the NYSE.
The Funds Board of Directors has a Fair Valuation Committee which is responsible for
establishing and monitoring policies and procedures reasonably designed to ensure that the Funds
assets are valued appropriately, objectively and timely, reflecting current market conditions. The
Funds Fair Valuation Committee is composed of directors who are not interested persons of the Fund
as well as certain employees of the Funds Adviser. The current Directors who are members of the
Fair Valuation Committee are Messrs. Holland, Lo and Rogers. The Fair Valuation Committee met once
during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008.
The Funds Board of Directors has an Investment Management Oversight Committee which is
responsible for overseeing and evaluating the nature and quality of the investment services
provided to the Fund by the Adviser in order to assist the Board in overseeing the investment
services being provided to the Fund by the Adviser. The current members of the Investment
Management Oversight Committee are Messrs. Chang and Hu and Ms. Liu. The Investment Management
Oversight Committee convened four times during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008.
The Board of Directors of the Fund held four regular meetings and two special meeting during
the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008. For the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008, each Director
attended at least seventy-five percent of the aggregate number of meetings held during the fiscal
year of the Board and of any committee on which he or she served.
For annual or special stockholder meetings, directors may but are not required to attend the
meetings; and for the Funds last annual stockholder meeting, eight Directors attended the meeting.
Stockholder Communications
Stockholders may send communications to the Funds Board of Directors by addressing the
communication directly to the Board (or individual Board members) and/or clearly indicating that
the communication is for the Board (or individual Board members). The communication may be sent to
either the Funds office or directly to such Board member(s) at the address specified for each
Director above. Other stockholder communications received by the Fund not directly addressed and
sent to the Board will be reviewed and generally responded to by management, and will be forwarded
to the Board only at managements discretion based on the matters contained therein.
6
Ownership of Securities
The following table sets forth information regarding the ownership of securities in the Fund
by directors and nominees for director as of November 17, 2008.
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Aggregate Dollar Range of Equity |
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Dollar Range of |
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Securities in All Funds Overseen or to be |
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Name of Director or |
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Equity Securities |
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Overseen by Director or Nominee in |
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Nominee |
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in the Fund |
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Family of Investment Companies |
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Current Directors |
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M. Christopher Canavan, Jr. |
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$1 - $10,000 |
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$1 - $10,000 |
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Harvey Chang |
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Michael F. Holland |
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$10,001 - $50,000 |
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$10,001 - $50,000 |
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Benny T. Hu |
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None |
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None |
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Christina Liu |
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Anthony Kai Yiu Lo |
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None |
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None |
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Joe O. Rogers |
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$10,001 - $50,000 |
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$10,001 - $50,000 |
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Bing Shen |
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None |
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None |
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The term Family of Investment Companies means two or more registered investment companies that
share the same investment adviser or principal underwriter and hold themselves out to investors as
related companies for the purposes of investment and investor services. The Fund is the only
investment company in the Family of Investment Companies. |
No director or nominee for election as director who is not an interested person of the Fund,
or any immediate family member of such person, owns securities in the Adviser, or a person directly
or indirectly controlling, controlled by, or under common control with the Adviser.
Transactions with and Remuneration of Officers and Directors
The aggregate remuneration, including expenses relating to attendance at board meetings
reimbursed by the Fund, paid in cash to directors not affiliated with the Adviser was $[ ] during
the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008. The Fund currently pays each director that is not
affiliated with the Adviser an annual fee of $20,000 plus $2,500 for each directors meeting and
committee meeting attended in person, and $2,500 for each meeting attended by telephone.
7
The following table sets forth the aggregate compensation from the Fund paid to each director
during the fiscal year ended August 31, 2008, as well as the total compensation earned by each
director from the Fund and other funds advised by the Adviser or its affiliates (collectively, the
Fund Complex).
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Pension or |
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Retirement |
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Total Compensation |
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Aggregate |
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Benefits Accrued |
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Estimated Annual |
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From Fund and Fund |
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Compensation |
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As Part of Fund |
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Benefits Upon |
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Complex Paid to |
Name of Person |
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From Fund(1) |
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Expenses |
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Retirement |
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Directors(2) |
M. Christopher Canavan, Jr. |
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Harvey Chang |
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Michael F. Holland |
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Benny T. Hu |
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Christina Liu |
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Anthony Kai Yiu Lo |
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Joe O. Rogers |
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Bing Shen |
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(1) |
|
Includes all compensation paid to directors by the Fund. The Funds directors do not receive
any pension or retirement benefits as compensation for their service as directors of the Fund.
|
|
(2) |
|
There is one fund in the Fund Complex. |
Required Vote
The election of each director will require the affirmative vote of a plurality of the votes of
the shares present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote for the
election of the directors. For this purpose, votes that are withheld will have no effect on the
outcome of the elections.
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE FUND RECOMMENDS THAT YOU VOTE FOR THE ELECTION OF THE EIGHT
NOMINEES FOR DIRECTORS.
PROPOSAL 2 APPROVAL OF A NEW FORM OF DISCRETIONARY INVESTMNT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT
On October 27, 2008, the Board and all of the Independent Directors, voted to approve and
recommend to shareholders a new form of Discretionary Investment Management Contract (the New
Management Agreement) between the Fund and Adviser. The New Management Agreement, if approved,
will replace the two agreements pursuant to which the Adviser currently manages the assets of the
Fund: 1) the Securities Investment Trust-Investment Management and Custodian Contract, dated August
22, 2001 (the Current Management Contract), and 2) the Investment Advisory and Management
Agreement, dated August 22, 2001 (the Current Advisory Agreement, and together with the Current
Management Contract, the Current Agreements). The Current Management Contract provides for
management of the assets of the Fund held through an investment trust (the Trust) established by
the Current Management Contract. Assets held in the Trust are invested in Taiwan, primarily in
equity
securities listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange. (the TSE). Assets of the Fund held outside
of the Trust are managed by the Adviser under the Current Advisory Agreement, which has been
supplemented by a
8
Direct Investment Management Agreement (the DIM Agreement) between the Fund and
the Adviser. The DIM Agreement supplements the Current Advisory Agreement with provisions required
by Taiwan law to permit the Adviser to manage the assets of the Fund that are invested in Taiwan
but not through the Trust.
The Fund is in the process of redeeming its interest in the Trust in other words, removing
assets from the Trust so that those assets can be invested directly by the Fund. The Fund is doing
this so that it can have greater flexibility in how it invests its assets in the future for
example, investing in securities of Taiwan companies that are listed on stock exchanges other than
the TSE. The Fund anticipate that it will have fully redeemed its interest in the Trust during the
first calendar quarter of 2009, at which point the Trust and the Current Management Contract will
terminate. The Fund is proposing to enter into the New Management Contract with the Adviser to
take the place of the Current Agreements at the time that the Current Management Contract
terminates.
The New Management Agreement provides for the Adviser to provide the same investment advisory
and management services as it provides under the Current Agreements except that it would apply to
all of the assets of Fund regardless of where they are held. The Advisers duties under the New
Management Agreement include making investment decisions, supervising the acquisition and
disposition of investments and selecting brokers or dealers to execute these transactions in
accordance with the Funds investment objective and policies and within the guidelines and
directions established by the Funds Board of Directors.
Under both the New Management Agreement and the Current Agreements, the Fund bears expenses
for (i) the acquisition costs of assets of the Fund, (ii) the disposal cost arising on the disposal
of assets of the Fund, (iii) stamp and similar duties and charges in respect of the Fund, (iv) the
cost of registering assets in the name of the Funds custodian, (v) expenses incurred in the
collection and distribution of income derived from assets held in the Fund, (vi) expenses of any
auditors or legal advisers in connection of the Funds assets, (vii) all taxation payable in
respect of income of (including stock dividends), or the holdings of or dealing with assets held
in, the Fund, (viii) all proper expenses incurred by the custodian in connection with the
acquisition or disposal of any assets held in the Fund, (ix) any compensation payable to the
Adviser or the custodian, (x) the cost relating to the publication of Unit prices of the net assets
of the Fund, (xi) the costs for any regular report sent to stockholders of the Fund, (xii) the
expenses incurred by the Fund in connection with its organization, the public offering of its
shares to investors in the United States and elsewhere, its registration and operation as a
registered investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and its qualification as a
regulated investment company under the United States Internal Revenue Code and (xiii) all other
expenses incurred by the Adviser on behalf of the Fund in the course of performing its duties.
Under both the New Management Agreement and the Current Agreements, the Adviser bears all other
expenses associated with the performance of its duties (including employee salaries and overhead)
other than expenses to be paid by the Fund, as specifically provided above. The Adviser is also
required to bear the fees and expenses of the Funds officers and directors who are interested
persons of the Adviser, if any.
The New Management Agreement may be terminated by the Fund upon the vote of a majority of the
directors or by the vote of a majority of the Funds outstanding shares of common stock as defined
in the 1940 Act, without payment of any penalty, upon 60 days written notice to the Adviser, and
will terminate automatically in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act) by the
Adviser. The New Management Agreement will also terminate (i) if required by Taiwan regulators,
(ii) if in the opinion of the Adviser further operation of the Fund in accordance with the New
Management Agreement is illegal, impractical or inadvisable having regard solely to the interests
of the Fund, or (iii) upon the
removal of the Adviser (liquidation or bankruptcy or revocation of the ROC license of the
Adviser being deemed to be a removal of the Adviser).
9
If approved by stockholders, the New Management Agreement would remain in effect for an
initial period of two years from the date of its execution by the Fund. Thereafter, the New
Management Agreement would continue in effect from year to year if its continuance is specifically
approved at least annually by (i) a vote of a majority of the Independent Directors, cast in person
at a meeting called for the purpose of voting on such approval, and (ii) either a vote of a
majority of the Board of Directors as a whole or a majority of the Funds outstanding shares of
common stock as defined in the 1940 Act.
FEE PROVISIONS OF THE NEW MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT
The compensation to be paid to the Adviser under the New Management Agreement is identical to
the compensation currently being paid to the Adviser under the Current Agreements. Under the terms
of the Current Management Agreement, the Adviser is entitled to receive for its services, a monthly
basic fee, payable in NT dollars, at an annual rate of 1.30% of the Funds average daily net assets
(including both Taiwan and U.S. assets). In addition, the basic fee payable to the Adviser is
subject to performance adjustments which may increase or decrease the basic fee (up to 0.30% per
annum of the Funds average net assets) on a monthly basis, depending on the performance of the
Funds investment compared to the performance of the Taiwan Stock Exchange Index during a rolling
performance period of 36 months. Effective for the period from January 1, 2008 to August 31, 2008,
the Adviser pursuant to a written agreement began waiving a portion of the basic fee so that the
basic fee will not exceed an annual rate of 1.00% of the Funds average daily net assets (the
Waiver). On September 1, 2008, the Waiver automatically renewed for an additional 12 months.
The Adviser must provide 90 days advance notice of its intention to terminate the Waiver. Under
the New Management Agreement, the basic fee will be 1.00% of the Funds average daily net assets
and the base fee will be subject to the same performance adjustment as under the Current
Agreements, as described above. The aggregate amount of advisory fees
paid by the Fund to the Adviser were US $3,445,557.39, for the fiscal
year ended August 31, 2008. There were no additional payments
made to the Adviser by the Fund for the fiscal year ended
August 31, 2008.
THE FACTORS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS REGARDING THE NEW AGREEMENT
On October 27, 2008, the Board, including all of the Independent Directors, met and
unanimously voted to approve the New Management Agreement and recommend it to stockholders. In
considering whether to approve the New Management Agreement, the Board, reviewed and evaluated
information provided by the Adviser and also obtained additional information from other sources.
The information reviewed by the Board of Directors concerned, among other things (i) the nature,
quality and extent of the advisory, administrative, compliance and shareholder services provided by
the Adviser to the Fund and the stockholders, (ii) the amount of advisory fees paid under the
current fee calculation relative to other advisers fees for comparable services and the Funds
expense ratio in relationship to industry norms, (iii) the feasibility of obtaining similar
services from another investment manager qualified to provide such services in Taiwan, (iv) the
extent to which, relative to industry practice, the Adviser has passed on any economies of scale to
the Fund and the stockholders in the administration of the Fund, (v) the responsibility and
liability assumed by the Adviser in managing the Fund entrusted to it and (vi) the income received
by the Adviser after deducting the cost of services provided to the Fund. The Board of Directors
had also been provided previously with a memorandum prepared by the counsel to the Fund describing
the directors legal duties in connection with its consideration of the continuation or
modification of the New Management Agreement. In addition, the Independent Directors who serve on
the Funds Audit Committee met privately to discuss what they believed would be an appropriate
level or levels of the advisory fee to be paid by the Fund to the Adviser, and the Independent
Directors discussed
such issues with the other directors.
10
In making its decision to approve the New Management Agreement, the Board considered a number
of additional factors, including the fact that the Funds portfolio would continue to be managed by
the current HSBC Taiwan portfolio management team, that over a number of years this portfolio
management team had achieved what the Board considers to be acceptable investment results for the
Fund and the good reputation of HSBC Taiwan as an investment manager in Taiwan. In addition, the
Board considered the fact that HSBC is a major global asset management company with extensive
resources and expertise in Asia. The Board also considered that over the many years that HSBC had
acted as an investment manager for the Funds assets, it provided high quality service to the Fund
and has been attentive and responsive to Board requests for information. In view of these factors,
and in an effort to maximize continuity in the management of the Fund, the Board is approving and
recommending the New Management Agreement and has decided to maintain the same management
relationship with HSBC Taiwan. The Board expressed its desire that the Fund continue to be managed
by the current portfolio management team, based on the Funds performance record and HSBC Taiwans
highly regarded investment capability in Taiwan. The Board also determined that the current fee
level is appropriate and fair to the Fund.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE ADVISER
HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited (HSBC Taiwan) currently serves as the Adviser
to the Fund pursuant to the Current Agreements. HSBC Taiwan will continue to serve as the adviser
to the Fund under the New Management Agreement. HSBC Taiwan was incorporated in Taipei, Taiwan in
1986 and registered as an investment adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. HSBC
Taiwan was formerly known as China Securities Investment Trust Corporation (CSITC). In August 2001, CSITC was acquired by HSBC Asset Management (Europe) Limited and renamed HSBC Asset
Management (Taiwan) Limited. HSBC Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited changed its name to HSBC
Investments (Taiwan) Limited, effective April 29, 2005, and as of June 2, 2008, HSBC Investments
(Taiwan) Limited changed its name to HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited. The Advisers
offices are located at 24th Floor, Section 2, 99 Tun Hwa South Road, Taipei, Taiwan ROC.
HSBC Taiwan is a wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc, one of the largest banks and
financial services companies in the world with assets of US$ 2.547 billion as of June 30, 2008.
HSBC Holdings plc is incorporated in England, with its head office in London. As of ___, HSBC
Taiwan managed NT$ ___(approximately US$ ___) in assets. HSBC Holdings plc has 335,000 employees
worldwide and maintains 9,500 offices in 85 countries and territories. The principal address of
HSBC Holdings plc is [6 Bevis Marks, London, England EC3A 7JQ]
11
The following table sets forth certain information concerning the principal executive officer and
each of the directors of the Adviser.
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Name and Address |
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Position(s) Held |
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Since |
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Principal Occupation(s) or Employment |
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with the Adviser |
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Andrew Chen
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President and
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2005 |
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CEO, HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited^. |
24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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Director
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Road,
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Section 2,
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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Eva SL Lo
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Chief
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2004 |
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Chief Compliance Officer, HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited^. |
24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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Compliance
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Road,
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Officer and
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Section 2,
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Director
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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Cheu Hung Jerry Lee
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Director
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2007 |
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24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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Road,
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Section 2,
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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Winnie W.T. Yu
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Chief
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2007 |
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Chief Operating Officer, HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited^. |
24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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Operating
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Road,
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Officer and
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Section 2,
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Director
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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Jack Peng Chang
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Chief
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2007 |
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|
Chief
Investment Officer, HSBC Global Asset Management (Taiwan)
Limited^. |
24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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|
Investment
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|
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Road,
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Officer and
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Section 2,
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Director
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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Rudolf Eduard Walter |
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Chairman and
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2007 |
|
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Apenbrink |
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Director |
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24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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Road,
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Section 2,
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
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Huang Cheng Erwin
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Director
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2006 |
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24th/F, 99 Tun Hwa South
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Road,
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Section 2,
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Taipei, Taiwan ROC
|
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^ |
|
As of June 2, 2008, HSBC Investment (Taiwan) Limited changed its name to HSBC Global Asset
Management (Taiwan) Limited. |
12
REQUIRED VOTE
The 1940 Act requires that an investment advisory contract between an investment company and
an investment adviser be in writing, that such contact specify, among other things, the
compensation payable to the adviser pursuant thereto and that such contracts be approved by the
holders of a majority of the Funds outstanding shares of common stock as defined in the 1940 Act
and discussed below.
Approval
of the New Management Agreement will require the affirmative vote of
a majority of the Funds
outstanding shares of common stock. As defined in the 1940 Act, a majority of the outstanding
shares means the lesser of 67% of the voting securities present at the Annual Meeting of
Stockholders, if a quorum is present, or 50% of the outstanding securities. For this purpose, both
abstentions and broker
non-votes will have the effect of a vote to disapprove the proposed amendment. The Fund will
continue under the Current Agreements if this proposal is not approved by stockholders.
13
A form of the New Management Agreement is attached as Appendix C.
THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT THE SHAREHOLDERS VOTE FOR THE PROPOSAL TO APPROVE THE NEW MANAGEMENT
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE FUND AND HSBC.
Audit Committee Report
The Audit Committee has reviewed and discussed the Funds audited financial statements for the
fiscal year ended August 31, 2008 with management, the Adviser and Tait, Weller & Baker LLP, the
Funds independent registered public accounting firm (Tait Weller), and has discussed with Tait
Weller the matters required to be discussed by Statement on Auditing Standards No. 61 (Codification
of Statements on Auditing Standards, AU Section 380), as may be modified or supplemented. The
Audit Committee has received the written disclosures and letter from Tait Weller required by
Independence Standards Board Standard No. 1 (Independence Standards Board Standard No. 1,
Independence Discussions with Audit Committees), as may be modified or supplemented, and has
discussed with Tait Weller its independence. Based on the Audit Committee review and discussions
referred to in the two preceding sentences, the Audit Committee recommended to the Board of
Directors that the audited financial statements of the Fund for the fiscal year ended August 31,
2008 be included in its annual report to stockholders and the Funds annual report filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
M. Christopher Canavan, Jr., Chairman of the Audit Committee
Joe O. Rogers, Member of the Audit Committee
Anthony Kai Yiu Lo, Member of the Audit Committee
Michael F. Holland, Member of the Audit Committee
Bing Shen, Member of the Audit Committee
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
Tait Weller serves as the Funds independent registered public accounting firm, auditing and
reporting on the annual financial statements of the Fund and reviewing certain regulatory reports
and the Funds federal income tax returns. Tait Weller also performs other professional audit and
certain allowable non-audit services, including tax services, when the Fund engages it to do so.
Representatives of Tait Weller are expected to be available via telephone at the meeting and will
have an opportunity to make a statement if they desire. Such representatives are expected to be
available to respond to appropriate questions at the meeting.
Audit Fees. For the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007, Tait Weller
billed the Fund aggregate fees of US$57,500 and US$55,000, respectively, for professional services
rendered for the audit of the Funds annual financial statements and review of financial statements
included in the Funds annual report to stockholders.
Audit-Related Fees. For the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007, Tait
Weller billed the Fund aggregate fees of US$6,800 and US$6,500, respectively, for assurances and
related services that are reasonably related to the performance of the audit or review of the
Funds financial statements and are not reported under the section Audit Fees above. Audit-Related
Fees represent procedures applied to the semi-annual financial statement amounts (reading the
semi-annual report and valuation and existence procedures on investments) as requested by the
Funds audit committee.
14
Tax Fees. For the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007, Tait Weller billed
the Fund aggregate fees of US$13,200 and US$12,500, respectively, for professional services
rendered for tax compliance, tax advice, and tax planning. The nature of the services comprising
the Tax Fees was the review of the Funds income tax returns and tax distribution requirements.
All Other Fees. For the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007, Tait Weller
did not bill the Fund any fees for products and services other than those disclosed above.
The Funds Audit Committee Charter requires that the Audit Committee pre-approve all audit and
non-audit services to be provided to the Fund by the Funds independent registered public
accounting firm; provided, however, that the pre-approval requirement with respect to non-auditing
services to the Fund may be waived consistent with the exceptions provided for in the Exchange Act.
All of the audit and tax services described above for which Tait Weller billed the Fund fees for
the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007 were pre-approved by the Audit
Committee. For the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007, the Funds Audit
Committee did not waive the pre-approval requirement of any non-audit services to be provided to
the Fund by Tait Weller.
Tait Weller did not bill any non-audit fees for services rendered to the Funds Adviser, or
any entity controlling, controlled by, or under the common control with the Adviser that provides
ongoing services to the Fund, for the fiscal years ended August 31, 2008 and August 31, 2007.
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners
Set forth below is information with respect to persons who, to the knowledge of the management
of the Fund, owned beneficially more than 5% of the Funds outstanding shares as of November [ ],
2008. The information is based on publicly available Schedule 13D and 13G disclosures filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission.
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Name and Address |
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Amount and Nature of |
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Percent |
Title Of Class |
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of Beneficial Owner |
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Beneficial Ownership |
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of Class* |
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* |
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Percentages are based on the number of outstanding shares of the Fund as of November [ ], 2008. |
Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance
Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires that the Funds officers and directors, and
beneficial owners of more than 10% of any class of equity security registered pursuant to Section
12 of the Exchange Act, make certain filings on a timely basis under Section 16(a) of the Exchange
Act. Based solely on a review of copies of such reports of ownership furnished to the Fund, the
Fund believes that during the past fiscal year all of its officers, directors and greater than 10%
beneficial holders complied with all applicable filing requirements.
15
Proxies will be solicited by mail and may be solicited in person or by telephone or telegraph
by officers of the Fund or personnel of the Adviser. The Fund has retained [ ]
to assist in the proxy solicitation. The cost of their services is estimated at $[ ], plus
out-of-pocket expenses. The expenses connected with the solicitation of these proxies and with any
further proxies which may be solicited by the Funds officers or [ ] in person, by
telephone, by facsimile, or by telegraph will be borne by the Fund. The Fund will reimburse banks,
brokers, and other persons holding the Funds shares registered in their names or in the names of
their nominees for their expenses incurred in sending proxy material to and obtaining proxies from
the beneficial owners of such shares.
No business other than as set forth herein is expected to come before the meeting, but should
any other matter requiring a vote of stockholders arise, the persons named in the enclosed proxy
will vote thereon according to their best judgment in the interests of the Fund.
Stockholder Proposals
In order to submit a stockholder proposal to be considered for inclusion in the Funds proxy
statement for the Funds 2010 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, stockholder proposals must be
received by the Fund (addressed to The Taiwan Fund Inc., c/o State Street Bank and Trust Company,
P.O. Box 5049, 2 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, Massachusetts 02206-5049) not later than August [9],
2009. Any stockholder who desires to bring a proposal at the Funds 2010 Annual Meeting of
Stockholders without including such proposal in the Funds proxy statement, must deliver written
notice thereof to the Secretary of the Fund (addressed to The Taiwan Fund, Inc., c/o State Street
Bank and Trust Company, P.O. Box 5049, 2 Avenue de Lafayette, Boston, Massachusetts 02206-5049),
not before October [23], 2009 and not later than November [20], 2009.
By order of the Board of Directors,
Adelina Louie
Secretary
c/o State Street Bank and Trust Company
P.O. Box 5049
2 Avenue de Lafayette,
Boston, Massachusetts 02206-5049
December ___, 2008
16
APPENDIX A
THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
AMENDED AUDIT COMMITTEE CHARTER
I. Composition of the Audit Committee
The Audit Committee shall be composed of at least three Directors:
|
(a) |
|
each of whom shall not be an interested person of the Fund, as defined in
Section 2(a)(19) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or an affiliated
person of the Fund, as described in Section 10A(m) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended (the 1934 Act); |
|
|
(b) |
|
each of whom shall not accept any consulting, advisory, or other compensatory
fee from the Fund (other than fees for serving on the Board of Directors or any
committee thereof) or have any other relationship to the Fund that may interfere with
the exercise of such persons independence from the Fund and Fund management; |
|
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(c) |
|
each of whom shall otherwise satisfy the applicable independence requirements
for any stock exchange or market quotation system on which Fund shares are listed or
quoted; |
|
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(d) |
|
each of whom shall be financially literate, as such qualification is
interpreted by the Board of Directors in its business judgment, or shall become
financially literate within a reasonable period of time after his or her appointment to
the Audit Committee; and |
|
|
(e) |
|
at least one of whom shall have accounting or related financial management
expertise as the Board of Directors interprets such qualification in its business
judgment. |
The Audit Committee shall determine whether at least one member of the Audit Committee is a
financial expert as defined in rules promulgated by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
(the SEC) under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and shall consider whether any member thereof
serves on the audit committee of any other public companies.
II. Purposes of the Audit Committee
The Audit Committee, in its capacity as a committee of the Board of Directors, is directly
responsible for the appointment, compensation, retention and oversight of the Funds independent
accountants, including the resolution of disagreements regarding financial reporting between Fund
management and such independent accountants. The Audit Committee should report regularly to the
Board of Directors with respect to the matters described in Section III of this Audit Committee
Charter. The Funds independent accountants are required to report directly to the Audit
Committee.
A-1
III. Responsibilities and Duties of the Audit Committee
The policies and procedures of the Audit Committee shall remain flexible to facilitate its
ability to react to changing conditions and to generally discharge its functions. The following
listed responsibilities describe areas of attention in broad terms.
To carry out its purposes, the Audit Committee shall have the following responsibilities and
duties:
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upon submission of an application form by the Funds independent accountants to
the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, to request information which would be
material to the Audit Committee regarding: (i) such application form; (ii) any material
amendments to such application form; and (iii) the written findings of the Public
Company Accounting Oversight Board in connection with that Boards inspection of the
Funds independent accountants; |
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to preapprove all auditing services to be provided to the Fund by the Funds
independent accountants*; |
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to pre-approve all non-auditing services, including tax services, to be
provided to the Fund by the Funds independent accountants; provided, however, that the
preapproval requirement with respect to the provision of non-auditing services to the
Fund by the Funds independent accountants may be waived by the Audit Committee under
the circumstances described in the 1934 Act**; |
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to ensure that the Funds independent accountants submit on a periodic basis to
the Audit Committee a formal written statement delineating all relationships between
such independent accountants and the Fund, consistent with Independence Standards Board
Standard No. 1, to actively engage in a dialogue with the Funds independent
accountants with respect to any disclosed relationships or services that may affect the
objectivity and independence of such independent accountants, including relationships
with or services provided to the Funds other service providers, and, if deemed
appropriate by the Audit Committee, to recommend that the Board of Directors take
appropriate action in response to the report of such independent accountants to satisfy
itself of the independence of such independent accountants; |
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to receive and consider specific representations from the Funds independent
accountants with respect to the independence of such accountants, audit partner
rotation, and conflicts of interest described in Section 10A(l) of the 1934 Act, and to
consider whether the provision of any non-audit services to the Fund by the Funds
independent accountants as |
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The Audit Committee may delegate to one or more
designated members of the Audit Committee the authority to grant such
preapprovals; provided, however, that the Audit Committee shall not delegate
preapproval of the audit required by the 1934 Act. The decisions of any member
or members of the Audit Committee to whom such authority has been given shall
be reported to the full Audit Committee at each of its scheduled meetings. |
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The Audit Committee may delegate to one or more
designated members of the Audit Committee the authority to grant such
preapprovals. The decisions of any member or members of the Audit Committee to
whom such authority has been given shall be reported to the full Audit
Committee at each of its scheduled meetings. |
A-2
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described in Section III(c) of this Audit Committee Charter is compatible with
maintaining the independence of those accountants; |
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to review arrangements for annual and special audits and the scope of such
audits with the Funds independent accountants; |
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to review and discuss the Funds audited financial statements with Fund
management; |
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to discuss with the independent accountants those matters required by Statement
of Accounting Standards Nos. 61 and 90 relating to the Funds financial statements,
including, without limitation, any adjustment to such financial statements recommended
by such independent accountants, or any other results of any audit; |
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to cause to be prepared and to review and submit any report, including any
recommendation of the Audit Committee, required by SEC Rules to be included in the
Funds annual proxy statement; |
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to review legal and regulatory matters presented by counsel and the Funds
independent accountants that may have a material impact on the Funds financial
statements; |
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to establish and administer policies and procedures relating to: (i) the hiring
of employees or former employees of the Funds independent accountants; and (ii) the
resolution of any disagreements between Fund management and the Funds independent
accountants regarding accounting and/or financial reporting policies and procedures; |
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to consider with the Funds independent accountants their comments with respect
to the quality and adequacy of the Funds accounting and financial reporting policies,
practices and internal controls and managements responses thereto, including, without
limitation, the effect on the Fund of any recommendation of changes in accounting
principles or practices by management or the independent accountants; |
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to receive and consider reports from the Funds independent accountants
regarding: (i) all critical accounting policies and practices to be used; (ii) all
alternative treatments of financial information within generally accepted accounting
principles that have been discussed with Fund management, ramifications of the use of
such alternative disclosures and treatments, and the treatment preferred by the
independent accountants; and (iii) other material written communications between the
independent accountants and Fund management, such as any management letter or schedule
of unadjusted differences; |
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to receive reports from the principal executive officer and the principal
financial officer, or persons performing similar functions, regarding: (i) all
significant deficiencies in the design or operation of Fund internal controls that
could adversely affect the Funds ability to record, process, summarize, and report
financial data and have identified for the Funds independent accountants any material
weaknesses in internal controls; (ii) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves
Fund management or other employees who have a significant role in the Funds internal
controls; and (iii) whether or not there were significant changes in the Funds
internal controls or in other factors that could significantly affect the Funds
internal controls subsequent to the date of their evaluation, including any corrective
actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses; |
A-3
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to establish procedures for: (i) the receipt, retention, and treatment of
complaints received by the Fund regarding accounting, internal accounting controls, or
auditing matters; and (ii) the confidential, anonymous submission of concerns regarding
questionable accounting or auditing matters; |
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to discuss with Fund management and the Funds independent auditors policies
with respect to risk assessment and risk management and the quality and adequacy of the
Funds internal controls and processes that could materially affect the Funds
financial statements and financial reporting; |
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to assist the Fund, if necessary, in preparing any written affirmation or
written certification required to be filed with any stock exchange on which Fund shares
are listed; |
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to at least annually, obtain and review a report by the independent auditor
describing: the firms internal quality-control procedures; any material issues raised
by the most recent internal quality-control review, or peer review (if any peer review
is conducted), of the firm, or by inquiry or investigation by governmental or
professional authorities, within the preceding 5 years, respecting one or more
independent audits carried out by the firm, and any steps taken to deal with any such
issue; and (to assess the auditors independence) all relationships between the
independent auditor and the Fund; |
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to review and reassess the adequacy of this Charter on an annual basis and
recommend any changes to the Board of Directors; and |
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to perform such other functions consistent with this Audit Committee Charter,
the Funds Certificate of Incorporation, the Funds By-laws, and applicable law, as the
Audit Committee or the Board of Directors deems necessary or appropriate. |
In fulfilling their responsibilities under this Audit Committee Charter, it is recognized that
members of the Audit Committee are not full-time employees of the Fund. As such, it is not the
duty or responsibility of the Audit Committee or its members to conduct field work or other types
of auditing or accounting reviews or procedures. Each member of the Audit Committee shall be
entitled to rely on (i) the integrity of those persons and organizations inside and outside the
Fund from which the Audit Committee receives information and (ii) the accuracy of the financial and
other information provided to the Audit Committee by such persons or organizations, absent actual
knowledge to the contrary (which actual knowledge shall be promptly reported to the Board of
Directors).
Fund management is responsible for maintaining appropriate systems for accounting. The Funds
independent accountants are responsible for conducting a proper audit of the Funds financial
statements and are ultimately accountable to the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee has the
ultimate authority and responsibility to select (subject, if applicable, to shareholder approval)
and evaluate the Funds independent accountants, to determine the compensation of the Funds
independent accountants and, where appropriate, to replace the Funds independent accountants.
IV. Meetings
The Audit Committee shall meet regularly with the Funds independent accountants (outside the
presence of Fund management) and at least once annually with the representatives of Fund management
responsible for the financial and accounting operations of the Fund. The Audit Committee shall
hold special meetings at such limes as the Audit Committee believes appropriate. Members of the
Audit
A-4
Committee may participate in a meeting of the Audit Committee by means of conference call or
similar communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in such meeting can
hear each other.
V. Assistance from Fund Management; Authority to Engage Advisers; Funding
The appropriate officers of the Fund shall provide or arrange to provide such information,
data and services as the Audit Committee may request. The Audit Committee shall have the power and
authority to take all action it believes necessary or appropriate to discharge its
responsibilities, including the power and authority to retain independent counsel and other
advisers. The Fund shall provide for appropriate funding, as determined by the Audit Committee as
a committee of the Board of Directors, for payment of compensation to: (i) the Funds independent
accountants and (ii) any advisers employed by the Audit Committee under this Section V.
[Adopted 10/20/03]
A-5
APPENDIX B
THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
NOMINATING COMMITTEE CHARTER
Purpose of Committee
The purpose of the Nominating Committee (the Committee) of the Board of Directors (the Board)
of The Taiwan Fund, Inc. (the Fund) is to recommend individuals to the Board for nomination as
members of the Board and its committees. The Committee shall report to the Board on a regular
basis and not less than once a year.
Committee Membership
The Committee shall consist solely of three or more members of the Board, each of whom is, in the
business judgment of the Board, independent under the rules of the New York Stock Exchange, Inc.
(the NYSE) and non-interested under the Investment Company Act of 1940.
Members shall be appointed by the Board and shall serve at the pleasure of the Board and for such
term or terms as the Board may determine. In appointing members of the Committee, the Board will
take into consideration such factors as it deems appropriate including, but not limited to,
judgment, skill, business experience and diversity.
Committee Structure and Operations
The Board shall designate one member of the Committee as its chairperson. In the event of a tie
vote on any issue, the chairpersons vote shall decide the issue. The Committee shall meet in
person or telephonically at least once a year at a time and place determined by the Committee
chairperson, with further meetings to occur when deemed necessary or desirable by the Committee or
its chairperson. The Committee may request members of management or others to attend meetings and
provide pertinent information as necessary.
Committee Duties and Responsibilities
The following are the duties and responsibilities of the Committee:
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Make recommendations to the Board from time to time as to changes that the
Committee believes to be desirable to the size of the Board. |
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Identify individuals believed to be qualified to become Board members, and to
recommend to the Board the nominees to stand for election as directors at the annual
meeting of stockholders or, if applicable, at a special meeting of stockholders. In
the case of a vacancy in the office of a director (including a vacancy created by an
increase in the size of the Board), the Committee shall recommend to the Board an
individual to fill such vacancy either through appointment by the Board or through
election by stockholders. In nominating candidates, the Committee shall take into
consideration such factors as it |
B-1
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deems appropriate. These factors may include judgment, skill, diversity, experience
with businesses and other organizations of comparable size, the interplay of the
candidates experience with the experience of other Board members, requirements of
the NYSE and the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) to maintain a
minimum number of independent or non-interested directors, requirements of the SEC
as to disclosure regarding persons with financial expertise on the Funds audit
committee and the extent to which the candidate generally would be a desirable
addition to the Board and any committees of the Board. In the event the Fund is
legally required, by contract or otherwise, to provide a third party with the
ability to nominate a director, the selection and nomination of such director need
not be subject to the Committees review. |
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Identify Board members qualified to fill vacancies on any committee of the
Board (including the Committee) and to recommend that the Board appoint the identified
member or members to the respective committee. In nominating a candidate for committee
membership, the Committee shall take into consideration the factors set forth in the
charter of the committee, if any, as well as any other factors it deems appropriate,
including without limitation the consistency of the candidates experience with the
goals of the committee, the interplay of the candidates experience with the experience
of other committee members, requirements of the NYSE for independent members to serve
on the Funds audit and compensation committees and the Committee, and requirements of
the SEC as to disclosure regarding persons with financial expertise on the Funds audit
committee. |
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To periodically review director and committee member compensation and recommend
any appropriate changes in compensation to the Board. |
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To fulfill any other duties or responsibilities expressly delegated to the
Committee by the Board from time to time relating to the nomination of Board and
committee members. |
Performance Evaluation
The Committee shall produce and provide to the Board an annual performance evaluation of the
Committee, which evaluation shall compare the performance of the Committee with the requirements of
this charter and set forth the goals and objectives of the Committee for the upcoming year. The
performance evaluation shall also recommend to the Board any improvements to the Committees
charter deemed necessary or desirable by the Committee. The performance evaluation by the
Committee shall be conducted in such manner as the Committee deems appropriate. The report to the
Board may take the form of an oral report by the chairperson of the Committee or any other member
of the Committee designated by the Committee to make this report.
Delegation to Subcommittee
The Committee may, in its discretion, delegate all or a portion of its duties and responsibilities
to a subcommittee of the Committee.
B-2
Resources and Authority of the Committee
The Committee shall have the resources and authority appropriate to discharge its duties and
responsibilities, including the authority to retain counsel and other experts or consultants at the
expense of the Fund. The Committee shall have the sole authority to select and retain a consultant
or search firm, to terminate any consultant or search firm retained by it, and to approve the
consultant or search firms fees and other retention terms.
B-3
APPENDIX C
THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
DISCRETIONARY INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT CONTRACT
C-1
THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
THIS PROXY IS SOLICITED ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS JANUARY 12, 2009
The undersigned hereby appoints Joe O. Rogers, Adelina Louie and Elizabeth A. Watson, and each of
them, the proxies of the undersigned, with full power of substitution to each of them, to vote all
shares of The Taiwan Fund, Inc. which the undersigned is entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting of
Stockholders of The Taiwan Fund, Inc. to be held at the offices of HSBC Investments (Hong Kong)
Limited, HSBC Main Building, Level 22, 1 Queens Road, Central, Hong Kong, on Monday, January 12,
2009 at 1:00 p.m., local time, and at any adjournments thereof, unless otherwise specified in the
boxes provided on the reverse side hereof, for the election of the directors named on the reverse
side, for the approval of the Discretionary Investment Management Agreement and in their
discretion, on any other business which may properly come before the meeting or any adjournments
thereof. The undersigned hereby revokes all proxies with respect to such shares heretofore given.
The undersigned acknowledges receipt of the Proxy Statement dated December ___, 2008.
PLEASE VOTE, DATE AND SIGN ON OTHER SIDE AND RETURN PROMPTLY IN ENCLOSED ENVELOPE.
Please sign exactly as your name(s) appear(s). When signing as attorney, executor, administrator,
trustee or guardian, please give your full title as such.
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HAS YOUR ADDRESS CHANGED? |
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DO YOU HAVE ANY COMMENTS? |
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FRONT OF PROXY CARD
Electronic Voting
Instructions
You can vote by
Internet or telephone!
Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week!
Instead of mailing your
proxy, you may choose one of the two voting
methods outlined below to vote your proxy.
VALIDATION DETAILS ARE
LOCATED BELOW IN THE TITLE BAR.
Proxies submitted by
the Internet or telephone must be received by
1:00 a.m., Central Time, on January 12, 2009.
Vote by internet
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Log on to the internet and go to
www.investorvote.com/TWN |
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Follow the steps outlined on the secured website. |
Vote by telephone
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Call toll free 1-800-652-VOTE (8683) within the United
States, Canada & Puerto Rico any time on a touch tone
telephone. There is NO CHARGE to you for the call. |
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Follow the instructions provided by the recorded message. |
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THE TAIWAN FUND, INC.
C/O COMPUTERSHARE
P.O. BOX 8694
EDISON, NJ 08818-8694
þ Please mark your votes as in this example.
Proposals
The Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR all the nominees
listed and FOR proposal 2.
1. The election of the following persons to serve as directors of the Taiwan Fund, Inc. for the
next year or until their successors are elected and qualified.
Nominees: (01) Harvey Chang, (02) Benny T. Hu, (03) Michael F. Holland, (04) Christina Liu, (05)
Joe O. Rogers, (06) Bing Shen, (07) M. Christopher Canavan, Jr. and (08) Anthony Kai Yiu Lo
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FOR o
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WITHHELD
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ALL
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FROM ALL |
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NOMINEES
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NOMINEES |
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For all nominees except as noted above
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2. The approval of a new Discretionary Investment Management Contract between the Fund and HSBC
Global Asset Management (Taiwan) Limited.
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FOR o
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AGAINST o
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ABSTAIN o |
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Mark box at right if an address change or comment
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has been noted on the reverse side of this card. |
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Please be sure to sign and date this Proxy. |
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Date: |
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Stockholder sign here |
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Co-owner sign here |
RECORD DATE SHARES:
BACK OF CARD